Clemson's C.J. Spiller dives into the end zone for a touchdown during the Tigers' 42-20 triumph over N.C. State on Saturday. The 13th-ranked Tigers are off to their best start since 2000 at 4-0.

By Kelly Whiteside, USA TODAY

Ever since the first team meeting of the season, Clemson coach Tommy Bowden has repeated this message to his players: "They don't give out trophies for being 1-0, 2-0, 3-0 and they don't give out trophies for being 4-0. It's 'Remember November.' Not September."

Even though Clemson rolled over North Carolina State 42-20 and looks like an Atlantic Coast Conference title contender, Bowden isn't about to put that label on his team anytime soon.

"We contended the last two years and all we got is a bunch of headaches. Contending is really not that good," Bowden said Sunday.

So does he like Clemson's chances of not just contending but winning the ACC title? "Heck, no. Heck, no," Bowden said. "I'd like to beat Georgia Tech and I'll be a step closer. And I like the players I got."

There is good reason for measured enthusiasm as the No. 13 Tigers (4-0, 2-0 ACC), off to their best start since 2000, prepare for Saturday's game at Georgia Tech (2-2, 0-2).

Last year, after a 7-1 start, the Tigers seemed poised to win their first league title since 1991. After beating the Yellow Jackets in October, they rose to a No. 11 ranking. Five days later a crushing loss to Virginia Tech sent the Tigers slumping to a 1-4 finish.

The booster club circuit in the offseason was particularly rough for Bowden.

"It depended on the alcohol," Bowden said. "If alcohol was served and they were drinking for an hour, you'd get some pretty cold-blooded questions. But if you stand eyeball to eyeball and they're not drinking courage, it's not as bad."

Heading into his ninth year at Clemson, he made about every preseason "hot seat" list around.

To avoid the letdown of 2006, which included a one-point loss to Maryland and a three-point defeat at South Carolina, Bowden has his team focused on simply getting better every Saturday.

"I don't know if we were better in the ninth game than we were in the sixth game last year," Bowden said. "I think (this year's team) has taken that to heart. We'll find out as we continue to play."

The Tigers meet their toughest ACC opponents in the comforts of Death Valley — No. 14 Virginia Tech (Oct. 6), Wake Forest (Nov. 10) and No. 11 Boston College (Nov. 17). But it might be hard to forecast what the ACC race might look like come November. The teams picked in the preseason to win their divisions, Florida State and Virginia Tech, lost early.

In the Atlantic Division, Boston College (4-0, 3-0) and Clemson are tied for first. In the Coastal, Virginia (with Bowden's fellow hot seat mate, Al Groh) is 3-0 in the league and 3-1 overall after knocking off Georgia Tech this past weekend. Miami and Virginia Tech begin league play Saturday.

Questions remain about the league, though. The ACC is the only one of the six major conferences not to have a team in the top 10 of any of the polls.

A preseason pick to finish third in the Atlantic Division, Clemson hopes to take the lead of its redshirt junior quarterback Cullen Harper.

"If anything, Cullen is an overachiever," Bowden says of the 6-4, 215-pound QB from Alpharetta, Ga. "He's been here four years and just now playing. He wasn't a heavily recruited guy, not an Elite 11, four-star rated guy. He just worked hard." Harper is ranked seventh in the nation in passing efficiency, completing 69.4% of his passes with 12 TDs and no interceptions.

Harper's father, Jeff, was the starting left tackle on Georgia's 1980 national team. In his home state, Harper was a bit overlooked since his Sequoyah High team ran the Wing-T offense. He committed early to Clemson and then missed almost his entire senior season due to a broken collarbone.

Even after he won the starting job this season, there were plenty of fans pining for heralded freshman quarterback Willy Korn. "Ever since I got here I've not been the one people talked about," Harper told The Greenville (S.C.) News at the start of the season. "Obviously I have a chip on my shoulder because of that."

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